Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes the freedom to change one’s religion or belief and the freedom to practice one’s religion or belief, either alone or in community with others, in public or private, in the teaching, worship and performance of religious and ritual practices. – Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18

This was later reaffirmed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as in a number of binding human rights instruments such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (article 8) and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (article nine).
The UN Human Rights Committee emphasizes that this freedom is “broad and deep” and that it “includes freedom of thought in all matters, personal beliefs and adherence to a religion or belief that can be practiced individually or in community with others”, that freedom of conscience should be equal to freedom of religion and belief, and protection should be provided for “theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess any religion or belief” 5. Thus, any serious faith or belief can be protected under this right, whether the person is a Sikh, opposed to hunting, pacifist, Mormon, vegetarian, or convinced of the need to combat climate change.

Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself. – Confucius.

In securing this freedom internationally, the focus has historically been on the religious freedom of minorities. Today, laws that ensure freedom of religion and belief no longer focus on the need to maintain the status quo in order not to undermine regional security, but reflect a range of issues, including non-discrimination, equality and dignity. Supporting this freedom has a number of both social and individual rationales, for it provides people with space to (openly) speak, (energetically) discuss and (freely) express the beliefs they have chosen, both individually and with others. The creation of an enabling environment for ensuring this freedom requires not only non-interference on the basis of religion or belief on the part of the state, but also positive measures to achieve and maintain such an environment in society as a whole. In practice, this should include, for example, the possibility of creating places for performing rituals or for moral and religious education.